The good Cornellians can do: Mike Turell ’70
As a medical entomologist, Mike Turell '70 is an expert on mosquito-transmitted viruses. He has conducted field studies in the jungles of South/Central America, Africa, and Asia. In his free time, Mike loves sharing his enthusiasm for the insect world with young people.
Mike leads The Entomology Club for his local 4-H in Frederick, Maryland—a post he has happily filled for the past 35 years.
“I enjoy watching the kids learn about the world around them,” Mike says. “Many of the kids have pet arthropods, and we show these to the public at various STEM and STEAM events. Club members let the public hold their Madagascan hissing roaches and tarantulas. It is amazing to watch people’s faces change from terrified to mesmerized as they hold one of the creatures.”
Mike reports that two members who met in his 4-H club later married, and that several members have pursued entomology degrees—including at Cornell.
“I hope that other entomology graduates will consider working with youth to pass their knowledge on to the next generation,” he says. “I think they, like me, will find it is a very gratifying endeavor!”
In July 2026, Mike served as Insect Study Merit Badge lead at the National Scout Jamboree in Glen Jean, West Virginia. Mike has helped staff the National Jamboree for the past 33 years, and, in 2019, he manned the Cricket Café at the World Scout Jamboree—where he served up food-grade crickets to more than 10,000 curious Scouts.
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